Scottish Executive

Access for Disabled People

Nicola Sturgeon (Glasgow) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive what its policy is with regard to exemption from congestion charging, road and estuarial crossing tolls and parking place levies for those disabled people who hold a valid disabled persons blue or orange parking badge; how it makes this policy known to all highway authorities and estuarial crossing operators, and how it monitors their implementation of the policy.

Lewis Macdonald: Disabled people who hold a valid disabled persons blue or orange parking badge are exempt from payment of tolls at the Erskine, Forth Road and Tay Road Bridges. Disabled people who are exempt from payment of vehicle excise duty are exempt from payment of tolls at Skye Bridge. The details are set out in the relevant legislation for each bridge. Toll charges and entitlement to toll exemptions are displayed at the tollbooths of each bridge.

  It is a matter for the authority at each bridge to ensure that charges and exemptions are applied correctly. The Executive monitors statistics on the number of exempt crossings on a regular basis for the Skye and Erskine Bridges. For the Forth Road and Tay Road Bridges this is a matter for the Forth Estuary Transport Authority and the Tay Road Bridge Joint Board, respectively.

  Exemptions from road user charges under the Transport (Scotland) Act 2001 will be the subject of regulations, a draft of which will be issued for consultation within the next few months.

Access for Disabled People

Nicola Sturgeon (Glasgow) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive whether it has any policy or recommendations with regard to the provision of parking facilities and level access close to the entrance areas of public buildings and facilities for able-bodied companions accompanying disabled passengers and whether it will seek to increase such provision.

Lewis Macdonald: In Scotland, all new building work, including alterations and extensions, which is covered by building regulations must comply with the Technical Standards for compliance with the Building Standards (Scotland) Regulations 1990, as amended. The issues of parking provision and access for disabled people are covered by Part S of the Technical Standards (Access to and movement within buildings, and protective barriers).

  National Planning Policy Guidance 17, paragraph 48, sets out guidance to local authorities and developers on access for disabled people and also considers the needs of older people and those travelling with children. It also mentions the special design requirements for wheelchair use.

  Paragraph 16 of the recently published draft addendum to National Planning Policy Guidance 17, which sets out maximum parking standards for new developments, also requires that councils continue to make provision for disabled parking and that the amount, location and design of this should be discussed with local disability groups. Comments and objections received to the draft are currently being analysed including those who have commented on the issue of meeting disabled parking requirements within the new maximum parking regime. The finalised addendum will be published towards the end of the year.

Access for Disabled People

Nicola Sturgeon (Glasgow) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive whether it will make representations to the Secretary of State for Transport to publish the report on the review of the disabled persons parking badge scheme.

Lewis Macdonald: The four UK administrations are currently undertaking a review of the Blue Badge Scheme and have received a report from the Disabled Persons Transport Advisory Committee (DPTAC) - the UK Government’s statutory adviser on the transport needs of disabled people.

  The scheme, however, is a wholly devolved matter and the Executive is therefore currently considering how any changes to the scheme recommended on an UK-wide basis by DPTAC should be addressed. I hope to be able to announce, along with the other administrations, the way ahead for the Blue Badge Scheme later this year.

  It is for DPTAC to consider whether and, if so, when to publish its report.

Civil Service

Linda Fabiani (Central Scotland) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive how many times it has deviated from the Civil Service Commissioners’ Recruitment Code in each year since May 1999.

Mr Andy Kerr: The Scottish Executive has not deviated from the Civil Service Commissioners’ recruitment code in any year since May 1999.

Civil Service

Linda Fabiani (Central Scotland) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive what the result of the last Civil Service Commissioners’ audit of its recruitment system was.

Mr Andy Kerr: I refer the member to the answer given to question S1W-28016 on 27 August 2002. All answers to written parliamentary questions are available on the Parliament’s website, the search facility for which can be found at:   http://www.scottish.parliament.uk/webapp/wa.search .

Civil Service

Linda Fabiani (Central Scotland) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive how often it has been reported to the Civil Service Commissioners in each year since May 1999.

Mr Andy Kerr: The Scottish Executive has not been reported to the Civil Service Commissioners in any year since May 1999.

Civil Service

Linda Fabiani (Central Scotland) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive how often it has received recommendations from the Civil Service Commissioners in each year since May 1999.

Mr Andy Kerr: The Scottish Executive has received no recommendations from the Civil Service Commissioners in any year since May 1999.

Civil Service

Linda Fabiani (Central Scotland) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive whether the Civil Service Commissioners were involved in its decision to employ 40 policy analysts.

Mr Andy Kerr: The Civil Service Commissioners were not involved.

Education

Fergus Ewing (Inverness East, Nairn and Lochaber) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive whether it will amend the allocation of funding to The Highland Council under the McCrone settlement in light of the representations it has received from the council and from schools within the council’s area.

Peter Peacock: Both the total provision for Modernising the Teaching Profession and the distribution methodology were agreed with COSLA on behalf of local government.

  The distribution formula for these resources uses pupil numbers as an objective measure of councils’ relative spending needs but also takes account of the additional costs of serving small schools in rural areas and islands. Separate allowances are also made through the Special Island Needs Allowance and Gaelic-medium education specific grant. Highland Council benefits from these adjustments by over £4 million this year – on top of its allocation based on pupil numbers.

Education

Miss Annabel Goldie (West of Scotland) (Con): To ask the Scottish Executive, further to the answer to question S1W-28510 by Nicol Stephen on 13 September 2000, what funding has been allocated to each local authority to support implementation of the recommendations in Citizens of a Multilingual World .

Nicol Stephen: The information requested is set out in the following table:

  


Education Authority 
  

Total Allocation 2002-03 
  



Aberdeen City 
  

 £127,000 
  



Aberdeenshire 
  

 £233,800 
  



Angus 
  

 £96,600 
  



Argyll and Bute 
  

 £85,300 
  



Clackmannanshire 
  

 £37,600 
  



Dumfries and Galloway 
  

 £145,100 
  



Dundee City 
  

 £100,100 
  



East Ayrshire 
  

 £98,500 
  



East Dunbartonshire 
  

 £94,500 
  



East Lothian 
  

 £73,100 
  



East Renfrewshire 
  

 £79,400 
  



Edinburgh, City of 
  

 £241,200 
  



Eilean Siar 
  

 £32,700 
  



Falkirk 
  

 £107,500 
  



Fife 
  

 £272,800 
  



Glasgow City 
  

 £370,700 
  



Highland 
  

 £215,500 
  



Inverclyde 
  

 £63,800 
  



Midlothian 
  

 £67,200 
  



Moray 
  

 £78,600 
  



North Ayrshire 
  

 £110,900 
  



North Lanarkshire 
  

 £257,300 
  



Orkney Islands 
  

 £23,600 
  



Perth and Kinross 
  

 £113,200 
  



Renfrewshire 
  

 £134,000 
  



Scottish Borders 
  

 £99,700 
  



Shetland Islands 
  

 £28,700 
  



South Ayrshire 
  

 £89,700 
  



South Lanarkshire 
  

 £242,100 
  



Stirling 
  

 £73,400 
  



West Dunbartonshire 
  

 £73,600 
  



West Lothian 
  

 £132,600 
  



Total Committed 2002-03 
  

 £3,999,800 
  



  The allocation to each local authority has been split into four equal payments. The first instalment of payments has been made and the second instalment is due soon.

Environment

Margaret Smith (Edinburgh West) (LD): To ask the Scottish Executive how it plans to improve public awareness that littering is an offence.

Ross Finnie: Currently, the Scottish Executive provides annual core funding of £234,000 to Keep Scotland Beautiful, who run a number of anti-litter initiatives designed to raise awareness. In addition, since the beginning of the last financial year, an extra £700,000 has been allocated for anti-litter campaigns such as the "Have some pride" poster campaign, which I launched in March.

  The Scottish Executive recently made £95 million available to local authorities as part of the First Minister's "Quality of Life" initiative. Around £3 million has been committed towards litter reduction schemes. Councils may choose to use some of this money to raise awareness.

Equal Opportunities

Linda Fabiani (Central Scotland) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive, further to the answer to question S1W-29344 by Ms Margaret Curran on 30 September 2002, how it will measure the success of its efforts in promoting equality mainstreaming.

Ms Margaret Curran: Our equality proofing of Scottish legislation, our consultation with communities, statutory bodies, the public and voluntary sectors, our close working relationship with the Equal Opportunities Committee, and our social justice research programme enable us to assess the success of equality mainstreaming.

Further and Higher Education

Linda Fabiani (Central Scotland) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive, further to the answer to question S1W-29340 by Ms Margaret Curran on 30 September 2002, whether figures on entry into higher and further education indicate a gap between deprived areas and the rest of Scotland.

Iain Gray: Yes. However, the most recent data available indicates that this gap is narrowing. Between 1998-99 and 2000-01 the percentage of further education students from "High Deprivation" areas increased from 18% to 24% and from "Above Average" deprivation areas from 17% to 22%.

  Information available on entry into higher education institutions is found in the Performance Indicators on Higher Education (HE) in the UK, published by the Higher Education Funding Councils in December 2001. Copies are available in the Parliament’s Reference Centre (Bib. number 18498). Table 1a of these indicators shows that the proportion of young full-time first degree entrants to HE from low participation neighbourhoods increased from 16% in 1997-98 to 18% in 1999-2000.

Further and Higher Education

Linda Fabiani (Central Scotland) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive, further to the answer to question S1W-29340 by Ms Margaret Curran on 30 September 2002, whether its spending proposals for 2003-06 will lessen the gap in the figures for entry into higher and further education between people from deprived areas and those from the rest of Scotland.

Iain Gray: Widening access to learning opportunities for those from disadvantaged areas continues to be a priority. Funds awarded for the period from 2003-06 will continue to support initiatives in this area and the Executive will continue to monitor the impact of these initiatives.

Further and Higher Education

Andrew Wilson (Central Scotland) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive what contact it has had with Napier University regarding the university's plans to develop a Scottish Centre for Creative Industries at the Craighouse Campus, detailing any form of support it has provided, or proposes to provide, for the project.

Iain Gray: Napier University’s plans for a Scottish Centre for Creative Industries were outlined to Mike Watson in the course of a brief meeting with its Dean of Arts and Social Sciences on 2 July 2002.

  The question of Executive support for such plans was not raised at that meeting, and has not been raised since. The allocation of funding to higher education institutions is a matter for the Scottish Higher Education Funding Council. Ministers are prevented, in terms of the Further and Higher Education (Scotland) Act 1992, from framing the conditions of grant by reference to particular institutions.

  Ministers were invited to attend the launch on 18 October of Napier University’s fund raising campaign, which has as one of its objects raising of funds for a Scottish Centre for Creative Industries. They have no plans to do so.

Housing

Linda Fabiani (Central Scotland) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive, further to the answer to question S1W-29346 by Ms Margaret Curran on 30 September 2002, whether it will consider writing off the capital housing debt of local authorities if councils and tenants, in light of local circumstances, decide not to transfer their housing stock.

Ms Margaret Curran: It has always been made clear that the arrangements agreed with HM Treasury for dealing with local authority housing debt would, as is the case in England, only apply in the case of whole stock transfers. The Executive does not have the resources to meet these costs from within its own budget.

Housing

Linda Fabiani (Central Scotland) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive, further to the answer to question S1W-29346 by Ms Margaret Curran on 30 September 2002, why the social justice section of its spending proposals 2003-06 mentions only stock transfer as an option for improving housing infrastructure and whether it will provide financial support for other proposals brought forward by local authorities for improving housing infrastructure.

Ms Margaret Curran: In addition to the support provided to councils for stock transfers the Executive also provides consents for local authority borrowing on the Housing Revenue Account. In the current year the borrowing consents are set at £180 million. Local authorities also undertake capital investment using receipts and rental income.

  The Executive is always happy to consider the merits of alternative proposals brought forward by local authorities and others.

Housing

Linda Fabiani (Central Scotland) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive, further to the answer to question S1W-29346 by Ms Margaret Curran on 30 September 2002, whether it will consider removing the 75% capital receipts clawback rule from local authority housing in light of its commitment to allow local authorities and their tenants to decide how best to secure investment in council housing.

Ms Margaret Curran: Following representations from COSLA I have agreed that COSLA and Executive officials should, on a no commitment basis, meet to discuss issues surrounding the use of capital receipts.

Justice

Roseanna Cunningham (Perth) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive what percentage of summary criminal cases in the sheriff court were completed within 20 weeks of first calling in each of the last three financial years and in 2002-03 to date, broken down by sheriff court district.

Mr Jim Wallace: The information requested is not currently available. An exercise to extract relevant data to provide a baseline for the new target is currently under way but the results will not be available for some time.

Justice

Margaret Smith (Edinburgh West) (LD): To ask the Scottish Executive how many people have been (a) arrested for and (b) charged with not wearing a seat belt in each of the last five years.

Mr Jim Wallace: Statistics on numbers of arrests are not collected centrally. The available information on persons proceeded against is given in the table. Information for 2001 is not expected to be available until around November 2002.

  Number of Persons Proceeded Against in Court for Seat Belt Offences1, 1996-2000

  


Year 
  

Number 
  



1996 
  

2,153 
  



1997 
  

2,513 
  



1998 
  

2,655 
  



1999 
  

2,679 
  



2000 
  

2,507 
  



  Note:

  1. Where main offence.

  Information on numbers of arrests is not collected centrally.

Prison Service

Roseanna Cunningham (Perth) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive what the costs of education services were in each prison operated by the Scottish Prison Service in each of the last five years.

Mr Jim Wallace: I have asked Tony Cameron, Chief Executive of the Scottish Prison Service to respond. His response is as follows:

  The Scottish Prison Service established new contractual arrangements for education service delivery from April 2000. The following table provides the actual expenditure figures for the previous two financial years. Figures for the preceding period were not disaggregated in the same way and have been excluded.

  





2000-01 
(£) 
  

2001-02
(£) 
  



Aberdeen 
  

26,847.64 
  

34,131.87 
  



Barlinnie 
  

317,461.53 
  

285,099.61 
  



Castle Huntly 
  

51,779.58 
  

62,873.16 
  



Cornton Vale 
  

94,199.29 
  

136,167.05 
  



Dumfries 
  

59,272.01 
  

68,144.91 
  



Dungavel 
  

11,432.37 
  

n/a 
  



Edinburgh 
  

133,389.46 
  

199,073.17 
  



Glenochil 
  

208,872.86 
  

236,456.59 
  



Greenock 
  

142,182.68 
  

147,649.30 
  



Inverness 
  

48,918.83 
  

42,075.19 
  



Low Moss 
  

69,783.97 
  

86,894.61 
  



Noranside 
  

39,784.21 
  

60,359.80 
  



Perth 
  

169,708.93 
  

197,152.14 
  



Peterhead 
  

41,774.27 
  

70,261.19 
  



Polmont 
  

118,463.24 
  

182,072.00 
  



Shotts 
  

205,008.59 
  

211,037.96 
  



Total 
  

1,738,879.00 
  

2,019,448.00

Prison Service

Roseanna Cunningham (Perth) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive, further to the answer to question S1W-28770 by Mr Jim Wallace on 19 September 2002, whether it receives information on the number of staff leaving HM Prison Kilmarnock.

Mr Jim Wallace: I have asked Tony Cameron, Chief Executive of the Scottish Prison Service to respond. His response is as follows:

  No.

Prison Service

Michael Matheson (Central Scotland) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive whether the Scottish Prison Service has purchased any land or property in Scotland over the last five years; if so, (a) where, (b) why the purchase was made and (c) at what cost.

Mr Jim Wallace: I have asked Tony Cameron, Chief Executive of the Scottish Prison Service to respond. His response is as follows:

  No land has been purchased over the last five years.

Prison Service

Roseanna Cunningham (Perth) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive, further to the answer to question S1W-28732 by Mr Jim Wallace on 26 September 2002, why it is commercially confidential to specify whether the premium paid to the authority in the event that a private prison cannot find insurance at a commercial price is greater than the premium previously paid to a private provider for the same insurance.

Mr Jim Wallace: I have asked Tony Cameron, Chief Executive of the Scottish Prison Service to respond. His response is as follows:

  Because such disclosure might prejudice future negotiations with the providers of a new prison.

Renewable Energy

Tavish Scott (Shetland) (LD): To ask the Scottish Executive whether it has a policy to encourage the use of renewable energy resources, such as biomass and solar energy, for the provision of heating for domestic and commercial premises.

Ross Finnie: The DTI is responsible for capital funding for bio-energy and solar technologies. Additionally in Scotland, the Scottish Clean Energy Demonstration Scheme supports renewable energy projects including heat pumps, biomass to heat and solar to heat schemes. The Scottish Executive is currently involved in discussions with Department of Trade and Industry on the introduction of a community and householder scheme to assist with funding for renewable energy projects. It is expected that solar heating and biomass heating projects will be eligible under programme criteria.

Renewable Energy

Tavish Scott (Shetland) (LD): To ask the Scottish Executive whether it has made an assessment of the total renewable energy resources available from on-shore and off-shore wind farms in Orkney and Shetland.

Tavish Scott (Shetland) (LD): To ask the Scottish Executive whether it has made an assessment of the total renewable energy resources available from wave energy in the seas round Orkney and Shetland.

Tavish Scott (Shetland) (LD): To ask the Scottish Executive whether it has made an assessment of the total renewable energy resources available from the tidal currents in the seas round Orkney and Shetland.

Ross Finnie: We have not undertaken such an assessment. We have, however, assessed the potential renewable energy resource from all renewables sources throughout Scotland. This study, Scotland’s renewable resource 2001 , which we published in December last year, estimated that the total resource could be as much as 60 GW capacity.

Renewable Energy

Tavish Scott (Shetland) (LD): To ask the Scottish Executive whether, in assessing its priorities for support for the development of renewable energy resources, it takes into account the benefit of the predictability of the energy available in the tidal currents in the seas round Orkney and Shetland.

Ross Finnie: Wave and tidal power provides a significant opportunity for Scotland. The excellent resource off the coast of Orkney was one of the factors taken into account by Highlands and Islands Enterprise in reaching its decision to site the European Marine Energy Test Centre there. I have announced that the Executive will financially support the establishment of the centre. It is not, however, our policy to give locational guidance on the siting of developments, this is a matter for developers themselves.

Renewable Energy

Tavish Scott (Shetland) (LD): To ask the Scottish Executive what action it is taking to encourage the provision of improved power distributionlines to allow the wind, wave and tidal power resources of Orkney and Shetland to be tapped and fed into the national grid.

Tavish Scott (Shetland) (LD): To ask the Scottish Executive what assessment it has made of the ability of the current power distributionlines to allow its enhanced renewable energy targets to be achieved and what action it is taking to address any shortcomings.

Ross Finnie: Our consultation paper acknowledges that it will be necessary to significantly strengthen the grid if we are to generate as much as 40% of electricity by renewable means by 2020. Issues relating to the electricity networks are reserved to Westminster. We are committed to working with the UK Government, the regulator, and the industry itself to ensure that the grid is developed and operated efficiently so as to ensure that our renewables potential can be fully realised.

Residential Care

Roseanna Cunningham (Perth) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive, further to the answer to question S1W-26764 by Cathy Jamieson on 27 June 2002, what the (a) average number of children held in and (b) total number of children sent to secure accommodation was in 2000-01, broken down by (i) gender, (ii) probable period of detention and (iii) reason for detention.

Cathy Jamieson: I refer the member to the answer given to question S1W-28844 on 13 September 2002. All answers to written parliamentary questions are available on the Parliament’s website, the search facility for which can be found at:   http://www.scottish.parliament.uk/webapp/wa.search .

Scottish Environment Protection Agency

Mr Jamie Stone (Caithness, Sutherland and Easter Ross) (LD): To ask the Scottish Executive whether the Scottish Environment Protection Agency will be prosecuting the UK Atomic Energy Authority for any recent discharge of radioactive particles from Dounreay.

Ross Finnie: This is a matter for the Scottish Environment Protection Agency (SEPA) and the United Kingdom Atomic Energy Authority. I understand that SEPA is not aware of any recent discharge of particles.

Scottish Executive Advertising

Michael Russell (South of Scotland) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive whether it has a procedure for ensuring that its advertising campaigns are scrutinised by the Minister for Finance and Public Services before approval of the use of advertising media is given; when any such procedure came into effect, and which advertisements run (a) on television, (b) on radio, (c) in the national newspapers and (d) in the local newspapers between 1 August and 30 September 2002 were subject to any such procedure.

Mr Andy Kerr: Budgets are held by Executive departments who seek their responsible ministers authority before running any advertising campaign. I am regularly updated on all campaign planning but under current arrangements, ministers are not required to seek central approval.

  I have been asked by First Minister to review the current practice and this review is now under way.

Scottish Executive Advertising

Michael Russell (South of Scotland) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive what procedure it and its agencies follow to purchase print space and air time for advertising and how much it and its agencies spent on buying air time on television and radio and print space in national and local newspapers for advertisements that ran between (a) 1 August and 30 September 2002 and (b) 1 July 1999 and 30 September 2002.

Mr Andy Kerr: The Media Communications Group discusses the need for a campaign with the commissioning department. It then manages a further meeting with its media buying agency, advertising agency and the department. A full briefing is given and the media buying agency is asked to come forward with a set of media proposals. Once these have been refined and agreed with the appropriate departmental minister the media buying agency is given approval to proceed and the media is subsequently booked.

  The information requested on media spend is as follows:

  (a) Media spend on press, television and radio for the period 1 August 2002 to 30 September 2002 was £1,649,811.

  (b) Media spend on press, television and radio for the period 1 July 1999 to 30 September 2002 was £14,177,400.

Scottish Executive Advertising

Michael Russell (South of Scotland) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive how many of it and its agencies’ advertisements were broadcast on commercial television from 1 August to 30 September 2002; what the subject was of each advertisement; how often each advertisement was broadcast, giving the total number of broadcasting slots and the duration of each slot; how much each advertisement cost to make, including agency costs, and how much each broadcast advertisement cost.

Mr Andy Kerr: The information requested is detailed in the table.

  


Campaign 
  

Production Costs 
(£) 
  

No. of Spots 
  

Duration (seconds) 
  

Media Costs
(£) 
  



Drugs 
  

Repeats 
  

304 
  

30/40 
  

282,037 
  



Environment 
  

Repeats 
  

191 
  

30/40 
  

211,382 
  



Foolsspeed 
  

Repeats 
  

149 
  

40 
  

203,074 
  



Travel Awareness 
  

Repeats 
  

149 
  

30/40 
  

183,019 
  



Fire Safety 
  

nil 
  

 54 
  

30 
  

 44,289 
  



Race 
  

150,000 
  

 47 
  

40 
  

 72,721 
  



Flu 
  

170,000 
  

 3 
  

30 
  

 8,887

Scottish Executive Advertising

Michael Russell (South of Scotland) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive how many of it and its agencies’ advertisements were placed in local newspapers from 1 August to 30 September 2002, excluding recruitment campaigns and the publication of statutory notices; what the subject was of each such advertisement; how often each advertisement was placed; how much it cost to make each advertisement, including advertising agency costs, and how much it cost to place each advertisement.

Mr Andy Kerr: The information requested is detailed in the table.

  


Campaign 
  

Production Costs
(£) 
  

No. of Ads 
  

Media Costs
(£) 
  



Children’s Panels 
  

19,871 
  

56 
  

96,705 
  



Concessionary Fares 
  

18,865 
  

94 
  

63,928 
  



Public Internet Access Points 
  

Repeats 
  

94 
  

76,784 
  



Drugs 
  

Repeats 
  

17 
  

9,982 
  



Flu 
  

9,528 
  

7 
  

7,123 
  



M74 
  

2,500 
  

6 
  

6,501 
  



NHS Helpline 
  

Repeats 
  

9 
  

3,180

Scottish Executive Advertising

Michael Russell (South of Scotland) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive how many of it and its agencies’ advertisements were placed in national print media from 1 August to 30 September 2002, excluding recruitment campaigns and the publication of statutory notices; what the subject was of each such advertisement; how often each advertisement was placed; how much it cost to make each advertisement, including advertising agency costs, and how much it cost to place each advertisement.

Mr Andy Kerr: The information requested is detailed in the table.

  


Campaign 
  

Production Costs (£) 
  

No. of Ads 
  

Media Costs (£) 
  



Children’s Panels 
  

7,640 
  

21 
  

105,000 
  



Drugs 
  

Repeats 
  

26 
  

28,346 
  



Environment 
  

Repeats 
  

12 
  

15,803 
  



Fire Safety 
  

3,940 
  

2 (supplements) 
  

36,795 
  



Flu 
  

2,722 
  

2 
  

 2,580 
  



NHS Helpline 
  

Repeats 
  

35 
  

 22,334

Scottish Executive Correspondence

Andrew Wilson (Central Scotland) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive whether it will provide a detailed response to the questions raised in the letter to it of 12 September 2002 from Dr Wendy Moffat of Cumbernauld regarding the potential health effects of motorway location on the adjacent population.

Lewis Macdonald: The contents of the letter received from Dr Wendy Moffat have been considered and a response was issued on 3 October.

Scottish Executive Correspondence

Dennis Canavan (Falkirk West): To ask the Scottish Executive what correspondence has taken place between it and members of the Royal Family about its legislative programme.

Ms Patricia Ferguson: Scottish Executive ministers exchange correspondence with members of the Royal Family from time to time on a range of matters. All such correspondence is treated as private.

Scottish Executive Staff

Linda Fabiani (Central Scotland) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive how many occupational psychologists it employs.

Mr Andy Kerr: The Scottish Executive core departments employ no permanent staff as occupational psychologists. Occupational psychologists are used by the Scottish Executive on a contract basis.

Shipping

Mr Kenny MacAskill (Lothians) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive what plans it has to promote short sea shipping and what funds are available, and what its strategy is in respect of any such plans.

Lewis Macdonald: Shipping is one of the most environmentally sustainable means of transport available, and the Scottish Executive is keen to encourage a modal shift of freight transport away from road onto water and rail. A significant funding mechanism for encouraging such modal shift is the Freight Facilities Grant (FFG) Scheme that has funded three awards totalling almost 16 million to move freight onto water. This total includes the 11 million FFG funding of the Rosyth to Zeebrugge ferry link which demonstrates the Executive's commitment to achieving modal shift in freight transport and to support short sea shipping as a means to this end. In addition, the Executive, in conjunction with the Department for Transport and the Welsh Assembly Government are looking at proposals to extend the scope of the FFG scheme in relation to maritime transport.

Shipping

Mr Kenny MacAskill (Lothians) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive what contribution it has made to the Marine Motorway Study and what plans it has to promote the outcome of the study.

Lewis Macdonald: The Executive has discussed with the research team the Marine Motorway Study, which is being undertaken by Heriot Watt and Napier Universities to establish the viability of freight ferry services on UK coastal routes as an alternative to long-distance road transport. The research was commissioned and partly funded by the Department for Transport which has responsibility for shipping, a reserved matter. We will consider the outcome of the study once it is completed.

  The Executive and the UK Government recognise shipping as providing environmental benefits. This is reflected in the support offered through the Freight Facilities Grant scheme. This provides assistance with capital expenditure costs to help make freight transport by water more competitive.

Social Justice

Linda Fabiani (Central Scotland) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive, further to the answer to question S1W-29338 by Ms Margaret Curran on 30 September 2002, how it reached its decisions on which indicators relate to the achievement of specific outcomes and which are relevant for monitoring area-based deprivation.

Ms Margaret Curran: The decisions were reached on the basis of the criteria set out in the answer given to question S1W-29338 on 30 September 2002. All answers to written parliamentary questions are available on the Parliament’s website, the search facility for which can be found at: http://www.scottish.parliament.uk/webapp/wa.search

Social Justice

Linda Fabiani (Central Scotland) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive, further to the answer to question S1W-29338 by Ms Margaret Curran on 30 September 2002, whether it intends to use the small basket of indicators rather than those in Social Justice Annual Report Scotland 2001 – A Scotland where everyone matters to measure progress on social justice.

Ms Margaret Curran: No. The small basket of indicators, which are based on existing targets including social justice milestones, is intended to offer an additional means of measuring progress on social justice.

Social Justice

Linda Fabiani (Central Scotland) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive, further to the answer to question S1W-29339 by Ms Margaret Curran on 30 September 2002, whether house-breaking is the only criminal activity that indicates a gap between deprived areas and the rest of Scotland.

Linda Fabiani (Central Scotland) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive, further to the answer to question S1W-29341 by Ms Margaret Curran on 30 September 2002, whether house-breaking is the only criminal activity that is relevant for monitoring area-based deprivation.

Ms Margaret Curran: House-breaking was chosen from a number of possible indicators as it is appropriate for monitoring area-based deprivation relevant to the national average and because the necessary data will be available at local area level for the baseline year of 2003-04.

Social Justice

Linda Fabiani (Central Scotland) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive, further to the answer to question S1W-29338 by Ms Margaret Curran on 30 September 2002, whether having exclusive access to at least four modern computers for every class is one of its targets.

Linda Fabiani (Central Scotland) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive, further to the answer to question S1W-29338 by Ms Margaret Curran on 30 September 2002, whether the provision of classroom computers is relevant for monitoring area-based deprivation relevant to the national average.

Linda Fabiani (Central Scotland) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive, further to the answer to question S1W-29338 by Ms Margaret Curran on 30 September 2002, whether having exclusive access to at least four modern computers for every class fits its definition of specific outcomes.

Linda Fabiani (Central Scotland) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive, further to the answer to question S1W-29338 by Ms Margaret Curran on 30 September 2002, whether the target of having exclusive access to at least four modern computers for every class was excluded from the basket of indicators for a specific reason and, if so, what the reason was.

Linda Fabiani (Central Scotland) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive, further to the answer to question S1W-29339 by Ms Margaret Curran on 30 September 2002, whether every teacher having access to a classroom computer is one of its targets.

Linda Fabiani (Central Scotland) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive, further to the answer to question S1W-29339 by Ms Margaret Curran on 30 September 2002, whether every teacher having access to a classroom computer is relevant for monitoring area-based deprivation relevant to the national average.

Linda Fabiani (Central Scotland) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive, further to the answer to question S1W-29339 by Ms Margaret Curran on 30 September 2002, whether every teacher having access to a classroom computer fits its definition of specific outcomes.

Linda Fabiani (Central Scotland) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive, further to the answer to question S1W-29339 by Ms Margaret Curran on 30 September 2002, whether the target of every teacher having access to a classroom computer was excluded from the basket of indicators for a specific reason and, if so, what the reason was.

Ms Margaret Curran: The Scottish Executive has provided 80 million to local authorities through the National Grid for Learning programme of the Excellence Fund in order to help them achieve a number of ICT-related targets in their schools, including pupil:modern computer ratios of 7.5:1 in primary schools and 5:1 in secondary schools. Local authorities and schools decide how to deploy those computers.

  The provision of ICT facilities is one of a number of important inputs to education. However, success in closing the gap between deprived areas and the rest of Scotland is best determined by looking at the outcomes of education.

Social Justice

Linda Fabiani (Central Scotland) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive, further to the answer to question S1W-29338 by Ms Margaret Curran on 30 September 2002, what the reasons were for its intention to select a small basket rather than a broad range of indicators.

Ms Margaret Curran: The Scottish Executive has in place a broad range of targets and indicators that measure progress at national level in respect of key outcomes. It was considered appropriate to select a small number of those targets and indicators that best met the criteria set out in the answer given to question S1W-29338, rather than a wider group that would include targets and indicators that were less directly relevant to measuring closing the gap. All answers to written parliamentary questions are available on the Parliament’s website, the search facility for which can be found at:   http://www.scottish.parliament.uk/webapp/wa.search .

Social Justice

Linda Fabiani (Central Scotland) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive, further to the answer to question S1W-29344 by Ms Margaret Curran on 30 September 2002, how much money it proposes to spend in promoting equality mainstreaming.

Ms Margaret Curran: The purpose of promoting equality mainstreaming is to ensure the systematic integration of an equality perspective into the everyday work of government, and as such should be an integral part of organisational costs.

Social Justice

Donald Gorrie (Central Scotland) (LD): To ask the Scottish Executive whether it will define the term "independent" in the context of its funding to local authorities for the provision of independent money advice.

Ms Margaret Curran: We have made available, through local authorities, a total of 3 million annually for the provision of additional local money advice. The guidelines for implementation, issued to local authorities on 22 April 2002 state that:

  "Local authorities will be able to use the additional resources to enhance their own provision as well as independent sector advice services. In making a decision on how to use the resources allocated to them local authorities should consider whether there currently is a choice for the client in providers of money advice, and whether there are independent money advice services available in the area."

  In this context "independent money advice services" refers to money advice services not directly run by the local authority.

Student Finance

Andrew Wilson (Central Scotland) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive why mature students are exempt from paying the graduate endowment.

Iain Gray: As we explained in the consultation paper Scotland the Learning Nation – Helping Students , a number of groups of students, including mature students are exempt from graduate endowment liability in order to encourage lifelong learning and ensure social justice.

Student Finance

Andrew Wilson (Central Scotland) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive what mechanisms are in place in order to ensure that all funds collected under the graduate endowment scheme are hypothecated for the purpose of funding future student support.

Iain Gray: The Executive will follow section 2 of The Education (Graduate Endowment and Student Support) (Scotland) Act 2001. Income arising from the graduate endowment will be accounted for in the Executive’s resource accounts and applied for the purposes of student support.

Tourism, Culture and Sport

Alex Neil (Central Scotland) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive what baseline figure will be used to measure and monitor each of targets 1, 2, 3, 8, 9 and 10 in the tourism, culture and sport section of Building a Better Scotland - Spending Proposals 2003-06: What the money buys .

Dr Elaine Murray: Technical Notes setting out the detail for each target in Building a Better Scotland - Spending Proposals 2003-06: What the money buys will be available shortly. The Technical Notes will include information on definitions, who will gather the data, how the data will be gathered, the time period covered, trends, baseline data, and milestones.

Voluntary Sector

Linda Fabiani (Central Scotland) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive, further to the answer to question S1W-29344 by Ms Margaret Curran on 30 September 2002, what it will deem a success in increasing opportunities for young people to get involved in volunteering.

Ms Margaret Curran: The success in increasing volunteering opportunities for young people will be achieved when, irrespective of their background, financial circumstances and location, young people can find, participate in and enjoy the volunteering experience.

  Increasing volunteering opportunities will also be a success when, as a result of their contribution, young people have helped improve and become more active in their communities, demonstrating acquired skills, knowledge, education, confidence and learning.

Voluntary Sector

Linda Fabiani (Central Scotland) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive, further to the answer to question S1W-29344 by Ms Margaret Curran on 30 September 2002, how much it proposes to spend in increasing the opportunities for young people to get involved in volunteering.

Ms Margaret Curran: We are spending almost 700,000 in 2002-03 on the Millennium Volunteers programme in Scotland. This programme is designed to encourage, support and recognise 16- to 25-year-olds who volunteer their time for the benefit of their communities. The programme is being reviewed and I plan to reach a decision about its future shortly.

  Through the Active Communities Initiative, we are also providing more than 244,000 over four years to Community Service Volunteers for its volunteering among young people in rural areas project. While this project is specifically aimed at young people, many more of the Active Communities Initiative funded projects will also involve volunteering by young people.

Voluntary Sector

Linda Fabiani (Central Scotland) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive, further to the answer to question S1W-29344 by Ms Margaret Curran on 30 September 2002, what obstacles to volunteering opportunities it intends to tackle.

Ms Margaret Curran: The main obstacles to volunteering in Scotland that we intend to tackle are poverty, disadvantage and social exclusion and we are doing this through our programme for government. However, there are also institutional and operational obstacles, principally relating to an individual’s ability to access advice and guidance on volunteering.

Voluntary Sector

Linda Fabiani (Central Scotland) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive, further to the answer to question S1W-29344 by Ms Margaret Curran on 30 September 2002, what volunteering training and support it intends to provide.

Ms Margaret Curran: Volunteer training and support is provided through Volunteer Development Scotland, which offers a range of generic training courses and runs events for volunteer agencies. In this financial year, Volunteer Development Scotland has held 13 courses for volunteer managers, attended by 146 people. It has also undertaken peripatetic training for volunteer centre staff. These assist volunteer engaging agencies to apply best practice and meet standards for the planning and delivery of volunteering. Similarly, volunteer centres work with organisations making use of volunteers to ensure that appropriate training and support is provided both to engaging agencies and volunteers.

Voluntary Sector

Linda Fabiani (Central Scotland) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive, further to the answer to question S1W-29344 by Ms Margaret Curran on 30 September 2002, how it intends to raise awareness about volunteering.

Ms Margaret Curran: We are raising awareness about volunteering through our investment in infrastructure and capacity at both the national and local level in the shape of Volunteer Development Scotland and the network of local volunteer centres. A central purpose of both is to encourage and facilitate volunteering opportunities for the people of Scotland.

  In addition, we have introduced the Active Communities Initiative. Scottish Executive funding for the initiative in 2002-03 will amount to 2.2 million. The initiative is a five- to 10-year strategy for supporting volunteering in Scotland, which aims to involve people in their communities, improve society and the quality of life of people, change attitudes to volunteering and break down barriers to involvement. The initiative has the full support of the volunteering sector.

  There is a variety of ways in which we publicise volunteering opportunities. This includes an Active Communities newsletter, produced twice a year by the Scottish Executive and distributed to a wide range of organisations and groups, articles in the voluntary and volunteering sectors publications and the funding of various events such as Volunteers Week and Make a Difference Day. We also plan to launch a new Scottish Executive Voluntary Issues Unit website shortly.

Voluntary Sector

Linda Fabiani (Central Scotland) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive, further to the answer to question S1W-29344 by Ms Margaret Curran on 30 September 2002, how it will measure its success in (a) tackling the obstacles to volunteering opportunities, (b) raising awareness about volunteering and (c) providing training and support.

Ms Margaret Curran: The Scottish Executive monitors and evaluates all of its funded volunteering programmes on a continuing basis against the formal performance criteria set for each project.

  The effectiveness and impact of the Active Communities Initiative, the Millennium Volunteers programme and the network of volunteer centres will determine how successfully we have tackled the obstacles to volunteering opportunities, raising awareness and providing support. We monitor and evaluate each of these strategies on an on-going basis, in collaboration with key agencies, including Volunteer Development Scotland, COSLA, Volunteer Centres Scotland and the Scottish Council for Voluntary Organisations.

Youth Crime

Roseanna Cunningham (Perth) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive what specific financial provision has been made for bail information and supervision schemes for 16- to 17-year-olds.

Dr Richard Simpson: The guidance issued to local authorities by the Justice Department in March, for the operation of bail information and supervision schemes, identified 16 and 17 years old as a priority group for such schemes. The funding made available to all local authorities for the operation of these schemes, under the ring-fenced 100% funding arrangements for criminal justice social work, is not, however, specifically earmarked for this age group.

Youth Crime

Roseanna Cunningham (Perth) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive when the mapping exercise on the role and work of youth justice teams mentioned in Scotland’s Action Programme to Reduce Youth Crime 2002 will be published.

Cathy Jamieson: Local authority returns to the mapping exercise are now available on the internet at: http://www.childrens-hearings.co.uk/youthjustice.asp

  The mapping exercise of local authority youth justice activity led to the Progress Report on Youth Crime in Scotland, which was published on the Executive’s website on 19 September 2002 at: http://www.scotland.gov.uk/library5/justice/tycs-00.asp.

  It is also available in the Parliament’s Reference Centre (Bib. number 24541).

Youth Crime

Roseanna Cunningham (Perth) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive what progress it is making on the implementation of the 10-point action plan set out in Scotland’s Action Programme to Reduce Youth Crime 2002 , broken down by point.

Roseanna Cunningham (Perth) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive what progress it has made on implementing  Scotland’s Action Programme to Reduce Youth Crime 2002 .

Cathy Jamieson: Scotland’s Action Programme to Reduce Youth Crime 2002 was published on 28 January. The 10-point action plan to tackle youth crime and disorder was launched on 27 June. Progress has been made on implementing the action points and I wrote to a number of Committee Convenors outlining this on 12 September. This work will be supported through the additional 15 million EYF funding we have announced for this year and in future by the resources identified in the Scottish Budget.

  The information requested is provided in the following table:

  


Ten Point Action Plan 
  

Action 
  



1. A pilot of Specialist Children’s Hearings to fast-track 
  persistent offenders under 16 
  

Discussions are being held with interested Local Authorities 
  to identify pilot areas, which will be announced very soon. 
  Discussions have also been held with SCRA and councils to 
  discuss the operational issues around fast-track hearings. 
  



2. A Youth Courts feasibility project for persistent offenders 
  aged 16 and 17, with flexibility to deal with 15-year-olds 
  

The Feasibility Project Group has been set up and sub-groups 
  are taking forward detailed work on pre-court processes; 
  court procedures; programmes and legal aid. The Youth Court 
  Feasibility Study will also consider issues of fast tracking 
  which will help to inform further work on Action Point 10. 
  



3. Reviewing the scope for using Restriction of Liberty 
  Orders, Anti-Social Behaviour Orders and Community Service 
  Orders for persistent offenders 
  

Improving the effectiveness of these disposals for this 
  age group is under cross-departmental consideration. 
  



4. A Safer Scotland police campaign on high visibility 
  policing, covering Youth Disorder, to increase visibility 
  and provide community re-assurance. 
  

An announcement is due shortly. 
  



5. Spread best practice, and establish firm standards, 
  for community-based projects funded through the Action Programme, 
  Better Neighbourhood Services Fund programmes and Making 
  Communities Safer programmes. 
  

The Executive is conducting an audit of current front-line 
  services that will inform future funding decisions. 
  



6. Consideration of a Scottish wide application of a system 
  of cautions/ warnings, and a detailed exploration of restorative 
  cautions approach, perhaps through piloting. 
  

Consultation is under way on a scoping paper, which takes 
  account of local developments in a number of police forces 
  and 2 million funding announces in March 2002 for the national 
  introduction or enhancement of programmes for those under 
  16. 
  



7. Reconfiguring the secure accommodation available nationally 
  to provide groups of girl-only accommodation, further consideration 
  of additional places and improving the range and provision 
  of programmes in secure units. 
  

The Executive’s intention to increase the number of 
  places was announced on 17 September. We have invited proposals 
  for the redevelopment of Scotland’s secure estate from 
  both current and potential providers, which are now under 
  consideration. 
  



8. A set of national standards to operate between local 
  authorities, the criminal justice system and Children’s 
  Hearings, covering reporting, timescales and follow up. 
  

The Youth Justice Steering Group will consider the Effectiveness 
  sub-group’s report and recommendations, which is due 
  shortly, and we will consult at the end of the year. 
  



9. Promote parental responsibility, through voluntary measures 
  and in the longer term to consider the feasibility of introducing 
  further statutory obligations on parents. 
  

The Executive is supporting a range of measures to empower 
  parents and build parental responsibility through Surestart, 
  New Community Schools and other initiatives. The evaluation 
  report of the Matrix project published on 3 October contains 
  positive findings emerging from their work with parents. 
  We will consider further how this model can be adapted or 
  replicated in other areas, and a funding announcement is 
  due shortly. 
  



10. Measures to increase the speed of referral to the courts, 
  will be considered, and introduction of specific targets 
  discussed with the judiciary. 
  

SCS have invited key partners onto a working group to take 
  this work forward.

Youth Crime

Roseanna Cunningham (Perth) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive why the interim progress report on youth justice teams mentioned in Scotland’s Action Programme to Reduce Youth Crime 2002 was not published until 19 September 2002 given that the mapping exercise to inform the report was due to have been completed by March 2002.

Cathy Jamieson: We began to gather information from local authorities for the mapping exercise in December 2001. After consideration, we agreed that an extension of the timescale available to local authorities would enhance the quality of the information that could be reported.

Youth Crime

Roseanna Cunningham (Perth) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive what the membership is of the multi-agency group to be set up as part of the Scotland’s Action Programme to Reduce Youth Crime 2002 to report on preventative approaches, develop standards and objectives for youth justice practitioners, examine accreditation arrangements for such standards and objectives and take forward proposals for training and information on youth justice, and when the group will report.

Cathy Jamieson: Membership of the group is shown in the following table. The group was set up in January 2002 and will shortly consider recommendations made by the sub groups on (a) victims and (b) improving effectiveness. Ministers will receive a report at the end of this year.

  Youth Justice Steering Group Membership

  


Name 
  

Position/Title 
  

Organisation 
  



Colin MacLean (Chair) 
  

Head of Children and Young People’s Group 
  

Scottish Executive Education Department 
  



Elizabeth Carmichael 
  

Head of Community Justice Services Division 
  

Scottish Executive Justice Department 
  



Rachel Gwyon 
  

Head of Young People/Looked After Children Division 
  

Scottish Executive Education Department 
  



Stuart Bond 
  

Head of Social Work Inspectorate Team 
  

Scottish Executive Education Department 
  



Jackie Brock 
  

Head of Youth Justice Branch 
  

Scottish Executive Education Department 
  



Mr Jim Keenan 
  

Depute Chief Constable Central Scotland 
  

ACPO (S) 
  



Alan Miller 
  

Principal Reporter 
  

Scottish Children’s Reporter Administration 
  



Sheriff Maciver 
  
 

Sheriffs’ Association 
  



To be confirmed 
  

Liaison Officer 
  

Crown Office and Procurator Fiscal Service 
  



Bill Whyte 
  

Director 
  

Criminal Justice Social Work Development Centre 
  



Romy Langeland 
  

Chief Executive 
  

Aberlour Childcare Trust 
  



Bernadette Monaghan 
  

Director 
  

Apex (Scotland) 
  



Hugh Mackintosh 
  

Director 
  

Barnardo’s Scotland 
  



Joe Connolly 
  

Acting Director 
  

NCH Scotland 
  



Susan Matheson 
  

Chief Executive 
  

SACRO 
  



David McKenna 
  

Chief Executive 
  

Victim Support Scotland 
  



Deirdre Watson 
  

Director 
  

Who Cares? Scotland 
  



Tony McNulty 
  

Rehabilitation and Care Directorate 
  

Scottish Prison Service 
  



Marion Pagani 
  

Chair 
  

Children’s Panel Chairmen’s Group 
  



Maureen Macmillan 
  

Chair 
  

Children’s Panel Advisory Group 
  



Catriona Smith 
  

Consultant in Public Health 
  

Argyll and Clyde Health Board 
  



David Coghill 
  

Consultant Psychiatrist 
  

Tayside Primary Care Trust 
  



Gordon Jeyes 
  

Director of Education 
  

Stirling Council 
  



Margaret Orr 
  

Senior Education Officer – Special Educational Needs 
  

Glasgow City Council 
  



Ronnie O’Connor 
  

Director of Social Work 
  

Glasgow City Council 
  



Martin Kettle 
  

Area Services Manager 
  

Glasgow City Council 
  



Greg Gallagher 
  

Principal Officer 
  

Glasgow City Council 
  



Bernadette Docherty 
  

Director of Social Work 
  

North Ayrshire Council 
  



Mairi Brackenridge 
  

Justice Services Manager 
  

South Lanarkshire Council 
  



Anil Gupta 
  
 

COSLA 
  



Bill Duffy 
  

Principal 
  

St Mary’s Kenmure